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This New Star Wars Character is J.J. Abrams' Tribute To The Beastie Boys


The Beastie Boys as we knew, ceased to exist in 2012 after Adam Yauch's death from cancer, but the memory of the American hip-hop band is being honored in an unexpected, sci-fi fashion.

Jedi Insider got a new Hasbro Black Series figurine of an alien X-wing pilot that we'll see in the upcoming Star Wars: The Force Awakens, one named Ello Asty; his helmet has the phrase "born to ill" written on it in Aurebesh, (Star Wars' written language). This is a reference to the Beasties' 1986 debut called Licenced to Ill, and they released Hello Nasty 12 years later.

Some people might think that this is just a strange coincidence, but it's no secret that The Force Awakens director J.J. Abrams is a known Beastie Boys fan. He soundtrakced one of the first scenes of 2009's Star Trek reboot with Ill Communication (there's "ill" again) highlight Sabotage. The official Star Wars database also describes Asty as "a skilled if occasionally reckless X-wing starfighter pilot for the Resistance", which sounds just like the Beasties when they were young. Asty might not have a lot of screen time in The Force Awakens, but this is a cool tribute from Abrams.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens will be released in theaters on December 18.

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